"Dusk till Dawn" Poker Club In Nottingham Diary (by Rob Yong)

[bookiebasher]

Compelling reading Rob. Great to get such an insight to the trials and tribulations of an entrapreneur ( I  could never bloody spell but looks about right )

Forgive me if i have missed it but have you sorted out whether you can play in your own establishment ?

Imagine it to be like the local lap dancing clubs....so close yet so far !!!!!

Really hope things go ok and cant wait for me to buy you a drink when liverpool miss out on 3rd place on the last day of the season.

[robyong]

Chubbs has come down Nottingham for this week so we can concentrate on sorting out the online side of the business. Me, Pete (poker name Shrek) and Chubbs had lunch with Paul "No Action" Jack in Birmingham to get some advice out of him as it's a bit of a mine field. Trouble is every time we asked him a question he told us another poker story. When the UK online guru, Action Jack, plays live poker, he told us he gets a bit nervous so he takes his mouse from his PC and keeps it in his pocket, what an honest guy. Apparently it ran out of batteries when he was head-up against Phil Ivey in the Monte Carlo Millions.

You see, this online stuff is not that simple, there is software, cages, skins, affiliates, banking etc. Because we have certain requirements regarding the banking that must meet the current gaming laws (ie. prevention of money laundering) plus the functionality I want players to have (be able to pay into tourneys in advance, withdraw money in live club etc) its not a straightforward job. By the end of the week I want to know exactly what we are going to do. Most of the current online poker rooms don't worry about all these various laws and do not have a "live poker element" so there are some problems to overcome here.

We are awaiting 3 designs and quotes for the refurbishment of the club this week which Nick is handling, trouble is we keep changing our minds on what we want where.............and the prices seems to go up all the time.

The good news is that our next door neighbours, Senatra's Table Dancing Club have contacted Nick to see if they can borrow our car park before we open, and chucked in free membership to all DTD members. Normally its a tenner to get in so thats a result!

I'm really starting to struggle for time at the moment, often going 2 consecutive days with no sleep, so a few things are going to have to be sacrificed. In a normal week before DTD came along my rough split of time each week would be:

1. MD of sf group - 0.5 days
2. Trustee of Charity work - 0.5 days
3. Look after my sister - 2 days
4. Poker - 2 days
5. Sportsbetting - 1.5 days
6. Property business - 0.5 days

Hey, its been a nice life last 2 years since I left sf group. Its impossible to do all of these things effectively now, so everything except looking after my sister will have to reduce or stop entirely. I have a very analytical way of using my time, this may seem a bit over the top to some people but I have to manage myself by a routine and the luxuries of studying the racing post/various web sites to study referees, match form etc are gone. Since I started the DTD venture I have gone from 5 times a week in the gym to never, and just about everything else has gone to pot. Its the meticulous way that I work that causes me these problems, some people are naturals but I'm afraid thats not me, everything has to make sense, have a reason and be logically correct, how sad is that.

Cheers Rob

[ACE2M]

Your drive amazes me rob.

Will hills have a system where by you can pay into and withdraw from your online account in their shops so a similar system may be the answer for your particular banking requirements.

I also remember reading about poker stars have a unique arrangement with the royal bank of scotland which keeps players money entirely seperate fom company money which also seems like a great idea you may have some interest in (good for the confidence of the punter).

As ever good luck with your endeavours and can't wait for the opening.

[actionjack]

Chubbs has come down Nottingham for this week so we can concentrate on sorting out the online side of the business. Me, Pete (poker name Shrek) and Chubbs had lunch with Paul "No Action" Jack in Birmingham to get some advice out of him as it's a bit of a mine field. Trouble is every time we asked him a question he told us another poker story. When the UK online guru, Action Jack, plays live poker, he told us he gets a bit nervous so he takes his mouse from his PC and keeps it in his pocket, what an honest guy. Apparently it ran out of batteries when he was head-up against Phil Ivey in the Monte Carlo Millions.

You see, this online stuff is not that simple, there is software, cages, skins, affiliates, banking etc. Because we have certain requirements regarding the banking that must meet the current gaming laws (ie. prevention of money laundering) plus the functionality I want players to have (be able to pay into tourneys in advance, withdraw money in live club etc) its not a straightforward job. By the end of the week I want to know exactly what we are going to do. Most of the current online poker rooms don't worry about all these various laws and do not have a "live poker element" so there are some problems to overcome here.

We are awaiting 3 designs and quotes for the refurbishment of the club this week which Nick is handling, trouble is we keep changing our minds on what we want where.............and the prices seems to go up all the time.

The good news is that our next door neighbours, Senatra's Table Dancing Club have contacted Nick to see if they can borrow our car park before we open, and chucked in free membership to all DTD members. Normally its a tenner to get in so thats a result!

I'm really starting to struggle for time at the moment, often going 2 consecutive days with no sleep, so a few things are going to have to be sacrificed. In a normal week before DTD came along my rough split of time each week would be:

1. MD of sf group - 0.5 days
2. Trustee of Charity work - 0.5 days
3. Look after my sister - 2 days
4. Poker - 2 days
5. Sportsbetting - 1.5 days
6. Property business - 0.5 days

Hey, its been a nice life last 2 years since I left sf group. Its impossible to do all of these things effectively now, so everything except looking after my sister will have to reduce or stop entirely. I have a very analytical way of using my time, this may seem a bit over the top to some people but I have to manage myself by a routine and the luxuries of studying the racing post/various web sites to study referees, match form etc are gone. Since I started the DTD venture I have gone from 5 times a week in the gym to never, and just about everything else has gone to pot. Its the meticulous way that I work that causes me these problems, some people are naturals but I'm afraid thats not me, everything has to make sense, have a reason and be logically correct, how sad is that.

Cheers Rob




i take a spare set of batteries out with me now just in case

[robyong]

Chubbs and me have spent all week speaking to various online poker rooms and all the feedback has been very positive. We sent them all a written specification of the DTD requirements and they sent us their answers back. What was surprising was the differences in their charges. Some rooms want to charge you a helfty price for the set up of the site, some charge a support monthly fee, othes just charge a % of rake and there are numerous scales of rake splits etc. It's a minefield of information that needs disecting and analysing before we make any further decisions. It may be necessary to get on a plane and meet some of these people but we'll cross that bridge when we have narrowed down the shortlist.

Everytime I think I've filled out the last form for the licencing, I get another one from the solicitor, surely I should not have to keep duplicating my name, address, contact details etc on every single form, its a right repetitive process. I'm not even considering the possibility of us not getting the gaming licence no matter how many times people mention it to me, I'm sure the Gaming Board will give me one after all the forms I have filled out, that's good logic.

It would have been nice to go to the EPT at Deauville this week, it was in my poker schedule, but time did not allow it unfortunatley. With being barred from the Broadway my next poker will be at Walsall, hopefully. Playing poker is the reason why I got involved in this venture in the first place, the ironic thing is that that I probably wont be able to play at the DTD club and most of the locations around the UK! Mind you, I've still got my house to play at.

The refit plans have not progressed this week, but we have finally managed to get detailed electrical, structural and mechanical plans from the owner of the building. This will make the job of the 3 designers we have instructed a lot easier. We will only end up going with 1 of them, basically whoever comes up with the best design. From their we select our contractor, who will be most efficient at executing the designers plans. Its a long process as we must get planning permission for our final design, but I am hoping we will be in and starting work in April. The schedule of works from rip out to completion has been estimated at 22 weeks by all 3 contractors, so basically we should definatley open in 2006.

Techology is a key issue in our club. We will have a number of systems that must all talk to eachother:

1. Online poker room
2. Online banking system
3. Internal cashiering and Membership system
4. Card Room management system
5. EPOS food and beverage system
6. Our Web Site

Hopefully Pete, our full time IT guy will be able to get these 6 pieces of software communicating so that we dont have loads of admin and wasted time. He is working his backside off so if the effort converts into results we'll be fine.

I'm gonna have this weekend off and spend it with my family. Too many light nights this week.

Cheers Rob

[booder]

, so basically we should definatley open in 2006

thats fantastic rob...............very pleased that everything is starting to come together for you,the amount of work you and your assistants are putting in is incredible.i am sure i speak for the majority of blonde when i say that i cant wait for the opening night....i am sure that will give you a high like no other..........look forward to meeting up at walsall(will your cuddly little chubbs be there also ?)

[SKIPPYSKIP]

The good news is that our next door neighbours, Senatra's Table Dancing Club have contacted Nick to see if they can borrow our car park before we open, and chucked in free membership to all DTD members. Normally its a tenner to get in so thats a result!

Can I join now Rob

[NoflopsHomer]

The good news is that our next door neighbours, Senatra's Table Dancing Club have contacted Nick to see if they can borrow our car park before we open, and chucked in free membership to all DTD members. Normally its a tenner to get in so thats a result!

Can I join now Rob

 

[Karabiner]

Thanks for the update Rob.

Can't wait to hear that you've been granted your license.

You know I'm a worrier...... 

[robyong]

Paul "The Marbaya Kid" Zimbler popped in to my house yesterday as he is in England for a few days. I showed him round the premises as he was one of the first people to set a card room up in Spain, so it was definately worth getting his opinion.

Problem was I forget my torch, basically when you enter the premises you have 30 seconds to de-activate the alarm (until security is called out), its pitch black so you need a torch to find the alarm console located at the other end of the building, I only had a lighter, so I had to wander round in the dark with the alarm going off, I've got a massive blister on my thumb from the burning myself with the lighter.

Its a sureal feeling standing in the middle of a 15,000 sq for building in total darkness with an alarm blaring and a voice announcing "you have been dectected as an intruder, security are on the way, please leave the premises". I seem to have a problem every time I show someone round the premises, last time I dropped the alarm key in total darkness and me, Chubbs and Simon Trumper were on our hands and knees for an hour trying to find the keys.

We have moved our web site development to another company who Pete knows. The people we used first did their best but we need some one a bit more advanced. Our site needs to link into other systems such as the Card Room Management system so their is some complex programming involved. The look and feel of a site is very subjective and everyone had a different opinion on what looks best, personally I think the best looking poker site in Daniel Negraneau's "Full Contact Poker", although its gone a bit commerical since he sold out to Big Stack enterprises.

We've got our first project meeting tomorrow round at my house. The full crew will be there, all 7 of us. I have completed the full project plan using a piece of software called Micorsoft Project (had to learn how to use it as I am an excel man). Each person has a full list of jobs by type and time deadline that we need to do before the club opens. Roughly, here are some examples of what each person's responsibilities in the set up will be:

Me - Finance and legals , project plan
Nick - the refit of the premises, all fixutures and fittings, planning, control of costs
Chubbs - club membership, online poker solution, marketing of DTD
Pete - web site, membership system, cashiering system, card room system, internet cafe
Aces Trumper - live card room rules and regulations, payouts, structures, procedures, 2007 major festival schedule (5 events)
Nightfly - everything to do with the card room, poker tables, chips, recruitment of dealers/supervisors, montlhy regular poker schedule
Darren - bar, restaurant, VIP club, recption, cashiering, recruitment of hospitaility staff

There's loads more stuff, but basically everyone has an area to work on and a nice long list, including me. I feel pretty organised having done this, but it is still bugging me why this whole thing is such a difficult job, sf group is 10x bigger that DTD, yet setting up and running that business was loads easier than doing this.

When you look down my project team its basically my best mate since we were 1 (Nick), his brother Darren, my local card room Manager (Nightfly), one of my Dads old work mates (Pete). and two of my poker mates (Aces and Chubbs). You can see how I do business, breaking that old saying " never do business with your friends". To me, trust is miles more important than experience or ability, people can learn how to do something, but a dickhead will always be a dickhead, no matter what he smiles and tells you.

The online side is progressing, however I can't help feeling that this is a shark infested industry. I've read up and done a lot of research with Chubbs, but I still feel we need to be really careful not to get bent over by one of these online businesses. They are all keen to tell us what they can do for us, but not so forthcoming in explaining how they will do it (satelittes, buy-ins etc)........sort of a "sign here and sort out the details later approach". What is very apparent is that their is a HUGH difference between "gross" and "net rake", and noone likes to bring this to your attention. You see after software charges, cage charges, bank fees, player fees the % you get is of the remainder, less that 50% of gross rake with some companies, but most of the don't seem to explain this very well.................I wonder why?

Since most od the DTD team are banned from the Broadway ,I'll have to follow the comp on Blondepoker, good luck to everyone that is playing, it looks a good structure and its a pity I can't play in it, maybe I'll play the £1000 in Sheffield this Friday instead, gotta get the poker fix. I haven't been to Gala since I reruited Nighfly, and I miss going there with my Uncle and Nick, and all the bantor that goes with it. I've been told that I can go still go there by friends at the casino, but just don't feel comfortable with it.

Cheers and good luck to anyone playing at Broadway, Rob








 

[Robert HM]

Interesting post, as ever. The concept of working with friends is one that has had me pondering before. I discussed setting up a practise with a friend some years ago, he felt he couldn't work as an employee and I had this aversion to partners having seen too many go "wrong".

Subject to licencing etc have you got a target opening date yet? this is one date I would hate to miss.

[robyong]

Interesting post, as ever. The concept of working with friends is one that has had me pondering before. I discussed setting up a practise with a friend some years ago, he felt he couldn't work as an employee and I had this aversion to partners having seen too many go "wrong".

Subject to licencing etc have you got a target opening date yet? this is one date I would hate to miss.

Hi Rob,


Some time in late 2006! Basically, we want to commence works in April, 26 weeks in the approx schedule, so December 2006 is realistic but not definate, depends on how our recruitment drive does (we need 60-70 people including part time staff etc). But, a xmas party is my own personal target.

Cheers Rob

[Robert HM]

Thanks for that, good luck as always.

[Splash]

The online side is progressing, however I can't help feeling that this is a shark infested industry. I've read up and done a lot of research with Chubbs, but I still feel we need to be really careful not to get bent over by one of these online businesses. They are all keen to tell us what they can do for us, but not so forthcoming in explaining how they will do it (satelittes, buy-ins etc)........sort of a "sign here and sort out the details later approach". What is very apparent is that their is a HUGH difference between "gross" and "net rake", and noone likes to bring this to your attention. You see after software charges, cage charges, bank fees, player fees the % you get is of the remainder, less that 50% of gross rake with some companies, but most of the don't seem to explain this very well.................I wonder why?
 

Gross and net rake!  One of my pet hates and one that catches a lot of players out with rakeback deals!  Eye cathcing headline figures are not always what they seem.  I stuck a article on my blog about this a few weeks ago...

http://wonkyjim.blogspot.com/2006/01/looking-after-you-margins-pt2-rakeback.html


Rob.. i see you are using MS Project, just one word of advice... save a new version of the mpp each week or so, once you start changing things as the project progresses it is very easy to cock it up and not be able to revert.  I'm an IT proj manager If you need any help with it feel free to drop me a line.

[charmaine]

Very fickle buisness , unbelievable that you cant go to other establishments  coz your setting your own up .